Leslie William Wotton (26 September 1907 – 9 April 1995) was an international

motorcycle speedway Motorcycle speedway, usually referred to simply as speedway, is a motorcycle sport involving four and sometimes up to six riders competing over four anti-clockwise laps of an oval circuit. The motorcycles are specialist machines that use only ...

rider from England. He earned 13 international caps for the

England national speedway team The Great Britain Speedway Team (also known as GB Speedway Team) is one of the major teams in international speedway. The team is managed by former Great Britain riders Oliver Allen and Simon Stead, and captained by the 2018 Speedway World Champ ...

Biography

Wotton, born in Bath rode in the pioneer years of British speedway beginning his British leagues career riding for

White City, Manchester White City is a retail park on Chester Road in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England. At the southeast corner of the docks area and southeast of Manchester United's ground, it is the site of the former Manchester Botanic Gardens which host ...

during the early part of the

1929 Speedway English Dirt Track League The 1929 English Dirt Track League was the inaugural season of speedway in the United Kingdom for Northern English teams. There was also a Southern League called the 1929 Speedway Southern League that started during the same year. Summary The se ...

season. He helped the team set the pace and lead the league table, winning 18 of their 20 matches but following a dispute, Manchester withdrew from the league handing Leeds the title. He rode the remainder of the season with

Liverpool Liverpool is a city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the 10th largest English district by population and its metropolitan area is the fifth largest in the United Kingdom, with a popul ...

. He stayed with Liverpool for the

1930 Speedway Northern League The 1930 Northern League was the second season of speedway in the United Kingdom for Northern British teams. The league was previously known as the English Dirt Track League but the addition of two Scottish teams prompted a name change and 1930 wa ...

season before joining Preston for 1931. On the formation of the new

National League The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the National League (NL), is the older of two leagues constituting Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada, and the world's oldest extant professional team s ...

, he was allocated to

West Ham Hammers The West Ham Hammers were a speedway team, first promoted by Jimmy Baxter in 1929. History They operated from the West Ham Stadium until the outbreak of World War II under several different promotions, most successfully under the control o ...

, where he won the Star Championship qualifier. However, he then signed for White City Nottingham for 1933. Another club change ensued in 1934, this time signing for

Birmingham Bulldogs Birmingham RLFC are a rugby league team based in Birmingham, United Kingdom. They play in the Midlands Premier division of the Rugby League Conference. History ''Birmingham Bulldogs'' were founded in 1989. The club's first season was in 1989� ...

. He finally found some stability with Harringay Tigers, where he would spend five years. With Harringay he won the

London Cup London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a major se ...

in 1935, reached the Knockout Cup final in 1935 and 1936 and was capped by England. Following the enforced break because of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, he returned to speedway riding in meetings during the Summer of 1945. He joined the

New Cross Rangers The New Cross Rangers were a Speedway team which operated from 1934 until their closure in 1953. They also rode as the New Cross Lambs from 1934 to 1935 and then the New Cross Tamers in 1936. The team were League Champions in 1938 and 1948. His ...

in 1946 and then moved on to

Wimbledon Dons The Wimbledon Dons were a professional motorcycle speedway team who operated from the Wimbledon Stadium, Plough Lane in London.Jacobs, N. ''Speedway in London'', The track opened in 1928 and the Dons operated there from 1929 until 1991. They w ...

, averaging 8.50 in 1947. With his career winding down, he doubled up with

Coventry Bees Coventry Bees were a motorcycle speedway team that existed from 1929 to 2018. They raced at Brandon Stadium, Brandon near Coventry, England. History A Coventry team was first formed in 1928 and competed in the inaugural season of the Southern ...

in 1949 and finally rode two seasons for the

Southampton Saints Southampton Saints were a speedway team which operated from 1928 until its closure in 1963. Its track was located at Banister Court Stadium in Southampton, Hampshire. History Southampton was one of the founder members of the 1929 Speedway Sout ...

from 1950 to 1951. Out of speedway, he was a haulage contractor.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wotton, Les 1907 births 1995 deaths British speedway riders Birmingham Bulldogs riders Coventry Bees riders Harringay Tigers riders Liverpool Chads riders New Cross Rangers riders Nottingham speedway riders Preston Speedway riders Southampton Saints riders West Ham Hammers riders White City Manchester riders Wimbledon Dons riders